A public records request does not have to be in writing and may be anonymous.

What is a Public Record?

Public records are documents, papers, letters, maps, books, audio and video
tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings, or other material regardless of
physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance
or in connection with the transaction of official business by the Department,
which are used to perpetuate, communicate or formalize knowledge.

Requests and Fulfillment

Public records held by the Department of Financial Services are available
upon request for inspection or copying pursuant to Chapter 119, Florida
Statutes, and Article I, s. 24 of the State Constitution.

Some public records are already provided for the public on the Department of
Financial Services website and are immediately available for viewing and
downloading. For example, you can obtain copies of Agency Final Orders at this
link:

Other records are not as readily available and will have to be located,
reviewed for exempt or confidential information, and redacted if necessary. As
such, the time to fulfill a public records request will vary depending upon the
particular record or records requested and the volume of the request. Department
personnel are committed to fulfilling your request as quickly and efficiently as
is reasonably possible.

Costs

Fees for copies of public records are established in law. Depending upon the
record, fees for copies may be either specific to the Department of Financial
Services or may be based on the general fees established in the Public Records
Act.

Some fees for copies of records of the Department of Financial Services are
established in s. 624.501, Florida Statutes. For example, fees for copies of
documents or records are 15 cents per page and certified copies of a document
are $5.00 per certification. Other specific fees are provided in other
Department statutes. For example, s. 633.111, Florida Statutes, provides that
Fire Investigative Reports are $10.00.

Fees for copies of records that are not listed specifically in statutes
administered by the Department are provided in s. 119.07(4), Florida Statutes,
the general fee provision for copies of public records. Fees for those records
generally are 15 cents per page for paper copies. Some requests, however, may be
subject to a statutorily-authorized special service charge for extensive use of
information technology resources or personnel services or both. Service charges
are determined by the lowest paid employee assigned to assist in filling the
public records request.

Any applicable charges will be invoiced, and the charges must be paid prior to the requested copies being processed.